When the sun rose the next day, the Qingmang people, who had suffered greatly, finally saw the end of their calamity. On this day that should have been filled with joy and happiness, all they could see was wailing and lamentation.

On the third day, when people began visiting each other's homes, every household hung up white silk and everyone wore mourning clothes. Everyone visited each other's homes, but only to handle funeral arrangements.

For these past few days, the people will carry memories no less vivid than those of six years ago, while for Qingmang City, there is only a simple record: On the first day of the first month of the 485th year of Xin Su, a bandit attack broke out in Qingmang City, Cangjing Prefecture, Nanshan Road, Nanjiang. The Jiuyue tribe, along with treacherous officials, attempted to breach the city. Fortunately, Magistrate Huang Yulang remained calm in the face of danger, and the people of Qingmang united as one to ultimately protect the city from harm.

Of course, this is an official record. If it were a county annals, it would carefully list the number of enemies, the direction of the attack, and who the leader was. At the same time, it would describe in great detail how the local officials, who were concerned about the people, got up in the middle of the night, worried about the city and its people, and then deployed troops to wipe out the bandits. It would also describe the details of the great generals, Niu, Mou Liao, and others, as well as the number of losses and casualties.

Such is the case with a county annals: they cannot record the cries of the dead, nor the pain of the living; a few strokes of glory, a few strokes of desolation, the sounds of blood and tears are nowhere to be seen, only the black and white ink on the paper remains.

When the county gazetteer, with its rich ink and fresh handwriting, was handed to Huang Yulang by the clerk, the local official, who was concerned for the people, squinted, stroked his upturned mustache, and finally took out a pen to add the names of two people to the side.

"That's too little, too little. How can this campaign against the bandits only be about me, Wang Qingyang, and Wei Jie? Or it should be about these same ambitious people we've been writing about for so long. It makes it seem like our Qing Mang has no successors."

"Add these two young men, give them prominent coverage! And cut some of the other old guys out!"

Under Huang Yulang's brush, the names Dao Chengyi and Li Zhengyuan are clearly visible. One is a martial arts genius of Qingmang recorded in the annals, and the other is a county-level candidate for the imperial examination, who can also be considered a person who brings glory to his family.

The clerk instantly understood, and took the county gazetteer with him as he left. Huang Yulang's refined and easygoing demeanor turned sour after he departed.

The plan to cut off the tail has been completed. The Niu, Liao, and Mou families have all suffered heavy losses in this incident, and the Mou family's piece of meat has, as expected, lost its threat.

The goal has been achieved, and the plan to weaken these powerful families that depend on the imperial dynasty has been successful. Qingmang City can be considered a relatively successful example of this.

However, for Qingmang City itself, and even for Huang Yulang, it was quite an unexpected event, resulting in heavy losses. Not to mention that his protector was unknown about his exact death, the five martial arts masters of the three major families were not completely wiped out, and the old ancestor of the Mu family still returned alive.

It is likely that Mu Qingyuan is not dead, and the rise of the Mu family has not been completely interrupted. The genius Dao Chengyi and the three ancestors can still allow the Mu family to continue.

The only consolation was that the fifth master of the Niu family also died in Wan Gui Valley, and the Niu family's supreme elder and the Liao family's patriarch were seriously injured and on the verge of death by Wei Jie and Master Li in their battle with Dao Chengyi.

"We still need to ask about the specifics, but it's not a bad outcome for now."

With the meat in his hands, the family's power has weakened to an unprecedented degree, and the government is sitting on the sidelines watching the tigers fight. It can be said that he is now at the peak of his power, and this achievement is enough for him to be promoted further.

After crumpling up the paper with the two names written on it, Huang Yulang, accompanied by his guards, prepared to head to the Mu family, also bringing along the Taoist priest recently hired by the government, Taoist Lizhu.

On ordinary days, a county magistrate's travels would be a grand affair, with four horses leading the way, two guards on either side, and an entourage following behind. But not now, since so many people had just died, he still needed to be considerate of the people.

Of course, he usually doesn't need to do these things personally; he just needs to arrange for a few people to deliver some things, and then he can show up and say a few words.

The simple black carriage moved along the still intact road, heading south of the city. Compared to the dilapidated outer city, the inner city was a completely different scene. The outside was decorated in white, while the inside was decorated in red. Some vendors were still there hawking their wares to create a New Year atmosphere, and some restaurants were telling stories about fireworks and thieves in bed at night.

Some wealthy merchants and noble families in the city who had long been attached to the government, or small families who were simply neutral, were now experiencing the feeling of being full with their mouths greasy, because apart from the Mu family, the Niu and Liao families had also been eaten quite a bit by them.

Singing and dancing, red sleeves fluttering, gongs and drums, cows dressed as animals, lion dances, a lively and bustling scene that brings joy and happiness to the people.

Upon arriving at the outer city, Huang Yulang lowered the curtain to prevent any commoners from crying out about their misfortunes and hoping for revenge. He had encountered these kinds of people every time he went to inspect the city these past few days, which was quite annoying!

The soundproofing of the carriage was activated, and Huang Yulang closed his eyes to rest. The carriage moved forward with some bumps until it finally arrived at its destination.

The Mu family's ancestral land, which was a wasteland just yesterday with not a single flat spot to stand on, is now cleared of rubble, with roads paved and many buildings having their foundations rebuilt. Logs are being shaving off to prepare for reconstruction.

Amidst the ruins, one can still see the grandeur of the past: the fortress walls thicker than city walls, the all-encompassing blood and flesh array, and the huge, cannon-fire-like craters visible from the outside, likely the bombardment marks of the military-restricted fire dragon cannons.

Building fortresses in violation of regulations, storing weapons, and privately training soldiers—these are just some of the crimes they've been accused of. It wouldn't be an exaggeration to condemn their entire families to death. These are the rats in the fields, the parasites of the nation.

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